The Rise
by Arashi Kanashimi
Summary: I thought it was over. I had escaped and I could manage to stay free.  But then I met Logan, and to say the least, my priorities changed. Plese note the that I wasn't the one who changed them.  LoganxOC
1. Chapter 1

**Yo! So this is my first X-men fanfiction. Um... Please enjoy and review! I love reviews!**

**P.S. the set-out of this story is just to make it easier on the eyes.**

Chapter 1: Road Trip

_Burger? _The thought popped into my head before I could stop it. My stomach had that emptiness of not being full. I like having a full stomach. I think it's comforting. Burger definitely wasn't my favourite food but, looking at the third-rate bar in front of me, I had a feeling it was the only food I would be getting.

I fingered the change in my pocket. It wasn't a lot, not enough for the rest of my travels, however long that would be. I climbed out of my Jeep (so not my first choice of a car) and shut the door behind me, slightly harder than was necessary.

Glancing around the car park, I took in the sight of an absolutely glorious motorbike. Well, it wasn't glorious, but, if you like bikes, it was a very nice one. With my minimal knowledge of vehicles, I still preferred porches.

I shook my head slightly. _Stop thinking cars_! I strode across the car park. Pushing open the bar's door, I stepped in. Cigarette smoke and the stink of alcohol greeted me. I coughed and a couple of heads turned in my direction.

I made my way to the counter, sat down and ordered a soda and a cheese burger. Unfortunately the burger turned out to be one of those cheap-as-hell, warm-it-up-in-the-microwave ones and the soda was most definitely house brand.

I quickly got rid of my look of disappointment though as the bartender cracked his knuckles. I scoffed down my burger quickly. Realising I would have to go as soon as I finished my meal, I sipped my drink (raspberry-flavoured I think) slowly.

A stool scraped along the floor on my left side and I turned. A well-dressed man was now sitting beside me. I eyed the expensive watch and the shirt that fitted perfectly. He was one of those pudgy people that the majority of the population avoid.

He sidled closer. I raised an eyebrow, only to realise it was hidden in the shadow cast by my hood. I took off my coat, giving him a good knock in the nose in the process. Now most guys would take that as a rejection, but this bright spark just seemed to get more excited.

He barely even flinched from the pain. Examining the sweating body and red face, I would have to guess the guy was either high or stocked up on a ton of testosterone. I noted the bartender watching doggedly, waiting to see what I would do.

The man crowded even nearer. I was rapidly becoming the focus of the bar's occupants. I scanned the room. My attention was drawn to a guy sitting further along the counter. He wore a black leather jacket. As I watched, he exhaled smoke from his cigar.

He had that look about him. I knew, as I often did, that he was a mutant. It wasn't telepath-type knowledge, just instinct. I met his eyes and without hesitation, he stood up and walked out of the bar. Suddenly a cool finger touched my arm.

I turned back to see the testosterone-guy touching me. "How 'bout we go somewhere quiet?" he murmured huskily. I took a deep breath and narrowed my eyes to slits. He tugged on my arm again. I made a fist and slugged him in the stomach, hard.

He should have toppled over. He should have, but he didn't. Something was wrong with this guy, seriously wrong. He grabbed my other wrist with his spare hand and pulled me against him. Panic flooded through me and I did the only thing I could: I pulled.

I pulled out his life-force in a steady stream. The guy slowly began to droop and his grip on my arms loosened. He finally collapsed and I stopped draining him. I could feel my heart beat thundering in my temples.

I massaged the bridge of my nose, a gesture that would normally calm me. It didn't work. The majority of the people around me were suddenly looking a lot more menacing. Some were scared, huddling in corners, but, as I said, a great deal more were about to go into angry mob mode.

I closed my eyes and felt the energy around me. I mentally gripped as much as I could, and yanked it from its owners. It came to me so easily. Power raced through my veins, fizzling beautifully. I let go and sank into the shimmering energy inside of me.

Pain suddenly pierced me and I opened my eyes. The energy faded, until it was all but gone. My head was killing me. I brought up my hands and felt the metal collar around my neck. For the first time I was thankful for it.

It kept my powers under control, stopping me submitting myself to the pulsing energy that lay dormant in my core. I looked around me. The people, all of them, were lying flat, hopefully just unconscious. I shuddered and tears welled up in my eyes.

I blinked them away. I rapidly searched testosterone-man's jacket and found a wallet, fat with money. I grabbed a wad of notes and stuffed them in my pocket. "Sorry," I mumbled before walking out the door.

The first thing I saw was that nice motorbike floating in mid-air. I stopped short in surprise. Even with mutants around, a flying motorbike is not a normal sight. Taking a good look around, I noticed the man with the leather jacket standing in the middle of the car park.

Someone was...floating (I really hate all this floating) in front of him. The mystery man had a billowing red cape on. Its constant fluttering kept distracting me. Almost hidden by the cape, the man's arms rose. With a groan, the cars around me lifted into the air.

My stomach tightened. _Magneto._ Why was he there? Had he come looking for me? My collar seemed to tighten. He must have come for me. There was no other reason for him to be there. The cars were encircling the other two mutants.

Sweat tickled down my face. I knew what he was going to do. I started running, my feet pounding on the tar. I vaulted over the bonnet of a Ford and I was in the clear. Nothing was between me and the guy in the jacket.

Magneto finally heard my footsteps and turned. I sprinted under his flying form. Unfortunately for me, he had fast reflexes. Magneto's arms swung and the cars came crashing towards me. I skidded to a stop facing the man.

Metal came into view over his shoulder. I stretched out my arms and focused. As if by magic, a shimmering ball of light enclosed us. I could just see the cars hitting the shield and disappearing. Sometimes I love my power.

My collar suddenly throbbed and a bolt of energy crackled out of it and into me. I screamed, a long wailing scream that wouldn't stop. I could feel the hostile energy searing through me. Needless to say, it was terrible, like being stabbed inside-out.

My shield faltered and I fell to my knees. My breath tore at my throat. I looked at the guy's (the one with the jacket) jeans. I just couldn't summon the strength to look any higher. I gathered energy into the palm of my hand.

I couldn't give up. I dragged myself around to face Magneto. I raised an arm to throw some of it at him. It was too much. My strength deserted me and I collapsed into the deep hole of unconsciousness.

I awoke to the smooth motion of a driving vehicle. Opening my eyes slightly, I peered through my eyelashes. I was in the back seat of my Jeep. I quietly sat up and peered into the rear-view mirror. Tilting my head at an angle, I managed to see the driver's face.

It was that guy, the mutant with the nice jacket. I caught sight of an empty beer can. "Are you seriously driving drunk?" I asked indignantly. "Do you want to die?" He glanced back, using the rear-view mirror just as I had.

"I can handle my alcohol." He thought for a moment. "What's your name, kid?"

"I'm not a kid!" There was a brief silence while he waited for a name.

"What's your name?" he asked again. I was pleased with the lack of a demoting noun at the end of the sentence. "Skye. And yours?"

"Logan." There was another stretch of silence. Then, "You okay?"

"Yeah." I remembered my earlier screaming. "Sorry." Logan looked sharply at me.

"Don't say you're sorry. You tried to help," he said gruffly.

"Um...I'll take that as a thank you," I decided. Then his words penetrated my brain. "Tried? I freakin' saved your life!"

"Hey, I was doing fine before you showed up," he retorted icily.

"Yeah. If doing fine means about to be crushed by tons of cars!" I shot back. Guilt crept into my heart. After all, Logan had been good enough to not abandon me in that stupid car park. "Sorry. You probably had a handle on things," I apologized.

He nodded and his expression barely changed but I could detect a whisper of smugness that had been absent a moment ago. Now if I normally ran into this type of guy, I'd slap that expression right off his face. But this was different.

He was a mutant and...something about him, his confidence or something, made me feel more secure than I had for a long time. "So d'you have a bone to pick with Magneto? I mean, he only gives the car treatment when he's especially threatened," I asked. Logan looked at me over his shoulder.

"You could say that." This guy was about as talkative as a chair (aside from the occasional sound of someone sitting on it, it never makes a noise). "And the bone is..." I prompted.

"I was on Alcatraz," he said. I gaped. Alcatraz was famous. It was the day it went mutant vs mutant, a complete massacre. He frowned slightly. "The cure doesn't stick," he muttered.

"Yeah. It suppresses the mutation for a while, but slowly it wears off," I told him. Logan suddenly stared at me suspiciously. "How do you know that? And what is a Class 4 mutant doing wandering around?" he questioned. I looked out the window. He slammed on the brakes and the Jeep screeched to a halt. "Start talking." I took a deep breath.

"I...I...I'm a laboratory experiment," I mumbled. My eyes misted and my throat stung. "I was with some mutants that they tried to cure. It didn't work. It even strengthened some of their powers." I looked miserably at Logan.

Now was the big finish. Mutants never trusted mutants touched by humans, openly shunning them. He was rigid, face turned away. "I... I managed to escape after the compound got taken over by the mutants." I opened the car door. There wasn't any point waiting to be cast out. I may as well just leave. I glanced back. Logan was still spaced out. "Thanks for the ride," I said and hopped out, shutting the door softly.


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey there again! Before you get started, I'd just like to thank my two lovely reviewers :) They are awesome! And you are also awesome since you're reading the second chapter. So enjoy and please read and review!  
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Chapter 2: Really Alone

My boots thudded on the tar (déjà vu much?). I strode along the road, carelessly near the middle. I didn't care. I didn't care if I got hit by a car, or if I died. There was no point, not in life, not in my very existence. If I disappeared off the face of the earth, no one would even notice. I was just tired of it all. "Jinx may as well take me back," I muttered.

A voice came from behind me, "Who's Jinx?" I slowly turned around. Logan was standing there, arms crossed.

"You-you don't..." I stuttered, blinking hard. He gave me an intense stare.

"Well, if I did, I'd be a hypocrite," he said.

"You- you were also imprisoned?" I asked.

"Yeah," he answered and I thought I could see a flicker of sadness in his eyes. I focused.

"Jinx was one of the test subjects for the cure. His power manipulates the human mind, in any way you can imagine. The cure just amplified his power. He went from class 2 to class 4 in a day," I told Logan. For a moment I thought of the lab. If I did go back there...

"He twisted the humans' minds in an instant. And somehow, the manipulation of their minds turned his own into something so despicably evil," I said. I could practically see the gears turning in Logan's brain. "I've heard someone's been gathering mutants in the south somewhere. I'd guess that's him. Magneto is also probably with him," I mused. Logan was giving off waves of intenseness. "Uh, are you okay?" I asked.

"You need to come with me," he ordered, grabbing my wrist. I dug my heels into the tarmac.

"No way. Not until you tell me what's going on!" Logan pulled my arm.

"There's no time for that. We need to let Storm know. The school could be under threat!" he exclaimed. I decided it was time to demonstrate my very special power, the power of not budging.

"Hell no! I don't know who that is or where he/she is or even if I can trust you!"

I regretted it the moment I said it. Logan's eyes iced over visibly and his grip on my wrist tightened. Before I could move, he had slung me over his shoulder and was marching back to the Jeep. "Let me go you ass! Jinx will be coming for me! I need to keep moving!" I shouted, pounding his back.

"You can't take me hostage in my own car, put me down!" He ignored my protests. I managed to land a reasonable blow on his spine.

He flinched slightly before telling me gruffly, "Stop struggling. We're going to be moving, at least for a while." Logan tossed me in the back of the Jeep, locked the passenger doors and hopped back in the front.

"AND NOW, TO TOP IT ALL OFF, YOU DRIVE MY CAR TO A PLACE I DON'T WANT TO GO TO!" I screamed. I was in full fury-mode now.

"Shut up," Logan said, rather too calmly. Strange, he had seemed like the type to have a huge temper. I smirked a little. My guess was that he was close to blowing a fuse.

"And if I don't?" I asked rather meanly. He held up a hand and 3 shiny claws slid out of his knuckles. I stared. "So where are we going then?" I asked.

The water coursed over my body. I sat in the corner of the shower. You might have gathered that I like showers. People don't normally sit in them. But I'd read once that running water, besides making you want to pee, can help stimulate thought.

I needed that, since I had so much to think about and all that. Originally Logan and I had just stopped at this hotel to try and get some food. But night had descended quickly and I knew Logan would be tired. I was just like him to insist on not letting me drive.

I was already getting a pretty good idea about his personality. I didn't like it. And now we had to stay in this crappy place. There was a knock on the bathroom door. "You going to stay in there forever?" Logan asked roughly.

"Yes," I called back crossly. Just thinking about him made me mad. My neck gave a twinge of pain. I pulled at my collar, trying to take some of the pressure off but I couldn't get any relief. All these emotions weren't good for me, not with my power.

I mentally shuddered. Losing control in this sort of place would hurt people, a lot of people. I breathed deeply and stepped out of the shower, turning it off as I went. My hands automatically wrapped a fluffy towel around me and I hurriedly dried off.

Once I had my clothes back on, I unlocked the bathroom door and came out. Logan was sprawled out on one of the beds, half-asleep. Driving must have tired him out more than I originally thought. As he saw me come out, he slowly stood up and stumbled to the shower, managing a cold glance at me despite his exhaustion.

I sighed and collapsed on the other bed. I heard the shower start up. The pitter-patter of the water was soothing. I could feel myself drifting off into a doze, and I didn't really mind. _Except I don't want Logan to get any sexist ideas about me being vulnerable. _

It was another one of those surprise thoughts. But it was true. The last thing I needed was some macho idiot trying to protect me. I sleepily crawled under my duvet. _Better. _And I let myself go.

My eyes snapped open. For a second I marvelled at that. It wasn't normal to be awake so easily for me. A rumbling snore came from next to me and I nearly jumped out of my skin. Of course I had forgotten about Logan.

That also explained me waking up so easily. I hate snores. Another long one came out of Logan's mouth. I covered my ears with my pillow but it didn't help. Logan gurgled deep in his throat as the snore subsided and I struggled with the urge to wake him like he had wakened me.

_Enough is enough. _I threw my duvet off and headed for the door. I needed to find somewhere quiet to sleep. A glint in the dark caught my eyes. It was the Jeep's keys. My mind drifted to thoughts of the car.A reclining seat was always comfortable enough.

Suddenly it jolted through me. _The keys! _I could escape! I pictured the open road, me speeding along it. Logan would be mad, but it wasn't like I was going to see him again, not if I took the Jeep. Before I had time to think it through, I grabbed the keys and slipped out of the room.

**So? I hope you enjoyed it.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Yo! This is Kanashimi here! Before we get started, I just have to say thanks to all the lovely people who added my to their alert list, it means a lot to me! And it also got me writing again, i couldn't let you guys down! And a huge thanks goes to Phoebe Langley****, who added my story to her community! So enjoy this chapter, and please review!**

Chapter 3: Loss of Control

I pressed my foot down on the accelerator. The Jeep's tires gripped the parking lot tarmac and the car jolted forward. _Sorry Logan, but you shouldn't trust people like that. _I hurried the Jeep along out onto the open road and put on some serious speed.

My stomach twisted into knots. _That doesn't feel too good. _I pushed the feelings aside and sped up even more. My eyes suddenly blurred up and for a frightening second, I was completely blind. I slammed on the brakes and my vision cleared. _What is going on with me? _

I started moving forward again, but not as fast this time. My legs trembled beneath me and my hands were shaking on the steering wheel. _I can't drive, not like this. _I slowed the Jeep to a crawl and pulled over to the side of the road.

My stomach lurched under me again and I vomited out the open window. Stumbling out the car, I leant against it to support myself. A wave of nausea swept over me and I retched again, this time falling to my knees. My neck throbbed and I pulled at my collar with weak hands.

Through my blurring eyes, I could vaguely see streaks of pulsing blue at the edge of my vision. They seemed to be radiating from me. I looked down at my body and felt another urge to puke. My body was glowing blue. _Why isn't my collar working? _I tried to shut off the power that was seeping from me. It wouldn't.

I couldn't say how long I lay there, desperately trying to gain control again. Dawn eventually broke, and I felt the warmth on my face. And with its strengthening heat, I knew Logan would come for me, Logan and Magneto.

I struggled to my feet and managed to get back to the door of the Jeep. Another wave of nausea and power hit me and I crumpled, my palm pressing against the metal of the car as though it was a stress ball.

"Shouldn't you be busy running away?" a voice asked casually. I groaned and managed to pull myself around to face the speaker. It was Logan. What a surprise. I gritted my teeth, too aware of how every molecule of my agony was clearly displayed on my face. Logan took a long look at me and sucked in a breath. "You look terrible."

I sucked air in through my teeth. "Wow, you're so subtle. You could charm the tail off a mouse," I managed to grind out. But I couldn't keep up the act and with another moan, I fell back into the dirt. I heard hurried footsteps, and suddenly Logan was beside me, a worried hand placed on my arm. "Don't, don't..." I forced out.

"What?"

"Don't touch me!" I screamed and tried to wretch out of his grasp. I was aware of something now; the energy inside of me was beginning to focus. Logan held on tightly, maybe just out of reflex. In a flash, the energy was released, blinding.

When it finally dissipated, I felt better, but only for the second before I saw Logan. He had slashes all over his body, quickly blossoming red. His skin was scorched raw and bloody. I caught the expression in his eyes, a look of pure agony. Then he keeled over slowly, face hitting the dirt.

_No, no, no, no, no, no. _This couldn't happen, not now, not again. I could feel tears sliding down my face, wet cold, cruel. No matter what, it would always end this way. A strangled sob escaped my throat. I gently turned Logan over. His face was so still, calm and peaceful.

And then the moron scared me half to my own death by giving a huge great gasp! Dead people don't gasp, it's rule number one. And he had gasped. Needless to say, I almost wet my pants, almost. Then I smacked him on the head, and his eyes opened as well, freaking me out even more. "What the hell is wrong with you?" I fumed. He smirked slightly, sat up and began rubbing the place where I'd hit him.

"I don't suppose you've ever heard of a healing mutation?" he asked smugly.

"So I guess you're immortal too?" I retorted. It was a rather sucky retort, but what can I say, they guy had just come back from the dead.

"Yeah," he answered. At that point I might have gaped at him, just a little bit. Logan, getting his senses back, noticed my wet cheeks. "You didn't need to cry for me," he told me. "I wasn't crying, you just kicked up a lot of dust when you fell and some got in my eyes," I covered. He shrugged noncommittally.

"So what exactly just happened?" he asked. I gave him a calculating glance. It's not like I could trust him, not with the absolute truth.

"I was just blowing off steam; it happens occasionally. Normally my collar helps keep the power in check, but sometimes it doesn't." I inwardly winced at my explanation. It sounded pretty pathetic, even to me. But Logan just shrugged again. I felt bitter. I was caught now, I had to go with him. And I knew, from experience, that it's best to do what the "controller" wants before he gets pissed. I managed to scramble to my feet and stagger to the Jeep. _God, I'm getting tired of that car._ I clambered in the passenger seat and did up my seatbelt. Logan clambered in beside me. I could see he was mildly surprised by my lack of fighting, but he kept his mouth shut as he started up the engine. I curled up with my back to him and stared out the window, the scenery blurring as we sped up.


End file.
